1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a data processing apparatus, a print processing apparatus, a data processing method of the data processing apparatus, a print processing method of the print processing apparatus, and a memory medium on which computer readable processing programs have been stored in a printing system in which the data processing apparatus and a plurality of print processing apparatuses communicate via a communication medium.
2. Related Background Art
Hitherto, there is a printing system such that a data processing apparatus such as host computer, scanner, or the like to generate a print job and a plurality of print processing apparatuses are connected through a communication medium and a plurality of print processing apparatuses simultaneously process one print job in parallel, thereby improving a printing speed.
In this case, if the data processing apparatus for forming print data and a plurality of print processing apparatuses are connected via a network, means for transmitting the print data of the same print job to each print processing apparatus by the times of only the number of print processing apparatuses is used.
In the conventional technique, however, since the print data of the same print job is transmitted by the times of the number of print processing apparatuses, a traffic of the network increases. There is a problem such that the improvement of the speed of the printing system cannot be expected in the case where a data amount of the print job exceeds transmitting performance of the network or the like.
Therefore, it is intended to solve the above problem by using a multicasting protocol by which a certain transmitting source can transmit data to a plurality of transmission destinations by one transmission. When the transmitting source transmits print data by the multicasting protocol, one print data flows on a communication medium. The one print data flowing on a communication unit basis is received by a plurality of transmission destinations.
However, when one print job is transmitted to a plurality of print processing apparatuses by using the multicasting protocol, all of the print processing apparatuses process the same print job. There is, consequently, a problem such that different numbers of prints cannot be designated or different finishing processes cannot be designated every print processing apparatuses.
A job control command to delete, interrupt, or restart the print job sent to each print processing apparatus is also similarly transmitted by the times of only the number of print processing apparatuses, so that the traffic of the network increases. There is a problem such that the improvement of the speed of the printing system cannot be expected when a data amount of the job control command exceeds the transmitting performance of the network or the like.
The invention is made to solve the above problems. That is, it is an object of the invention to provide a printing system in which a data processing apparatus and a plurality of print processing apparatuses can communicate via a communication medium, wherein the data processing apparatus adds a print instruction to generated print data and transmits the print data and the print instruction to a plurality of print processing apparatuses by a multicasting protocol, and the print processing apparatus receives the print data and the print instruction transmitted to the own apparatus by the multicasting protocol and processes the print data in accordance with the print instruction.
Further, it is an object of the invention to provide a data processing apparatus in the above printing system, a print processing apparatus, a data processing method, a print processing method, a printing method, and a memory medium on which processing programs have been stored.
Thus, the print job is transmitted to a plurality of print processing apparatuses without enhancing a network traffic and the print job is efficiently processed in parallel by a plurality of print processing apparatuses.